Save Me, Enslave Me
by AlexOfEden
Summary: When Joss gets captured, Vlad turns him into his drudge to keep them from killing him. However, Joss is anything but a willing captive. /mature/ JossXVlad - Vloss... Yaoi / Slash   Don't like, don't read.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Welcome to the first chapter of Save Me, Enslave Me! I had this on DA, and it received a great welcome. I know there are a few minor changes I need to make - this does not have a batereader as of yet. Feel free to point any mistakes out to me, and I shall fix them. Anyways, enjoy.

WARNINGS: MATURE, malexmale relationships. Might get graphic later. Angsty, bloody, ect. ect. This is pretty much a master/slave relationship to start. You have been warned.

**Save Me, Enslave Me**

Chapter 1  
>Welcome to Hell<p>

Joss had never expected this. Never in a million years. As one who lived to kill vampires, and did so with speed and accuracy, he had thought he could never fail. Of course, he reflected morosely, that was probably his undoing. Now, he was sitting in a damp cell with wet stone walls and bits of hay. The cold of the stone floor was seeping through the seat of his tattered pants, and his arms, bound tight behind his back, were long numbed from their strained position. He didn't know how long he had been kept there, only knew the waiting had long since made his mask of indifference crumble into pieces, revealing his true emotions; fear and defeat, covered by a thin mask of rage.

Rage at the creatures who had captured him, stolen him out of his bed at night and dragged him into the darkness towards a still-unknown fate. It was ironic, he realized now - many times he had dragged one of them from their daylight sleep to their deaths. Perhaps this was their way of getting revenge. Were they going to pour acid on his skin and stake him through the heart next? The idea made his stomach turn.

For a moment, he thought that maybe, just maybe, that would be a just end. He had done the same to so many of them, perhaps their revenge was deserved? But, no. That was absurd. They were monsters, demons who lived to kill. Actually, they killed to live, but what difference did it make? They were still soulless creatures that would sneak into a sleeping girls room and suck her veins dry as he brother watched in terrified silence. They deserved every second of pain he had given them, and then some.

Drip…Drip…Drip…

Joss slowly looked up at the ceiling, eyes finding the source of the annoying dripping noise and following the droplets of dirty water to the ground. He sighed and rubbed his tongue over the roof of his mouth, feeling it stick uncomfortably. It had been at least a day since he had eaten, and longer since he had anything to drink. Hi pride was the only thing keeping him from cupping his hands under the drip and drinking. He wondered if the water was contaminated, and if it would make him sick. Then, he wondered if he should really care any more. He doubted he would get out of this alive anyways.

His musings were interrupted by the sound of footsteps outside his cell. He didn't move, didn't look up as they stopped outside of the door. He had a feeling he knew what he would see - the large beast of a guard peering at him through the small, ragged barred window in the wooden door with a fanged leer. Joss looked at the wall, eyes hidden by ragged, filthy blond bangs; he needed a hair cut, and was grateful now that he hadn't gotten one. He didn't want his captors to see the defeat and pain swimming in his green eyes.

Unlike the times before, however, the door swung open, and the man walked in. "Come on, mortal." The man growled, grabbing one of his bound arms and dragging him to his feet. Joss would have winced and protested if his shoulders weren't already numb. He sagged in the mans hold a second; his legs were asleep and it took a second to get them to work. The man didn't give him time, though, and began to drag him out the door, and it took a few steps for Joss to catch his footing. He followed on shaky steps down the long stone hall. The other cell doors stood open; he was the only captive at the moment. There had been one other when he had come a few days before; he had been a scraggly, sandy haired male with a wry grin and a single fang. He had been a slayer as well, and had had the fang implanted, a memento from his first hunt. He had been proud and grinned constantly to show it off, thinking it was the coolest thing. Joss just thought it was creepy.

The large wooden door at the end of the hall opened to a set of stone steps leading to a twin door at the top. They went up and out, and Joss had to squint against the light. It was only from a few lamps in the large room but, compared to the dark of the cells, it was like staring at the sun for a moment. He stumbled along, the guard not seeming to need to let his eyes adjust, and soon found himself across the room - which looked like some sort of lobby - and into an elevator. The annoying, happy elevator music seemed painfully ironic to the slayer; his stomach churned with dread, and the feeling increased with every floor they climbed. His eyes had finally adjusted, thank God.

The doors opened to a long hall with only a set of doors at the end. On the walls were black and white portraits of people, very few of them smiling. As they passed, Joss was slightly disturbed to find the few who were smiling all sported long, deadly fangs.

The guard stopped him at the doors and knocked, three loud raps. There was silence, then the door slowly opened. Joss thought for a moment that they had opened on their own, like they were under a spell like in a creepy horror film, until he saw the two men who had simply been out of sight behind the doors. They were tall, muscular, and sporting sharp glares and fanged smirks.

Joss wished the doors had indeed been spelled.

He was pushed roughly by the guard, and took a few stumbling steps into the room. The guard remained outside. The doors were shut softly and the two vampires tending them each grabbed one of his arms and led him to a large, hard chair in the center of the room. He was pushed into it, arms beginning to sing their song of pain once more, loosing their numbness to the movement. They weren't unbound. Joss hadn't expected them to be.

In front of him, was a long table with 5 large, high backed chairs. In each one, sat a vampire, three males and two females, each appearing somewhere in their elder thirties, though Joss knew they were much older from the look in their eyes. Eyes that had seen more than he could ever imagine.

Joss felt his fear return full force as he realized what was going on. He was going to be tried for vampire slaying in a court held by the very monsters he had hunted down. He suddenly wished he had thrown his pride and sipped the dripping water. He was suddenly positive it would have been the last drink he would ever get.

Unless, of course, they made him drink poison.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Remember the warnings in last chapter? Yeah. Those stay. BTW, I OWN NOTHING. Except the plot of this, of course.

Chapter 2  
>Judgment Time<p>

Joss closed his eyes and tried hard to control his breathing. He knew the vampires could hear his heart beating against his rib cage and didn't want to give them any more reason to look down on him. But the truth was, he was terrified. He had just spent days in a damp cell, and now he was sitting in front of 5 strong vampires, unarmed with his arms bound behind his back. It was defiantly not a good situation to be in, especially because the vampires had every reason to kill him. After all, he had killed so many of them. Over 50 now.

There had only been one vampire he had failed to kill, 3 years ago. The creature was named Vladimir Todd, and Joss had been his friend for nearly a year before he even found out the boy was a vampire at all. He had been distraught to learn he had been hunting one of his only friends without even knowing it. He had attacked the boy, and staked him through the heart.

But the boy hadn't died. And Joss didn't think he would ever know why.

Joss broke out of his thoughts as the vampire in the middle began to speak. The man accused him of murdering their brethren, and asked how he plead. Joss didn't know why he bothered to ask. He didn't reply.

"You are accused of over 30 accounts of slaying. If you remain silent, we shall consider it pleading guilty." Joss looked away; he had killed more than that.

Suddenly, he felt a prickling in his head, and memories were pulled to the front of his mind. He watched himself attack a vampire after vampire, slaying them quickly and efficiently. Then, he saw Vlad. He saw himself creep up behind the other, stake in hand.

The memory stopped.

The vampires were glaring at him, and he realized what that was. They had looked through his memories. They knew of his guilt.

"Normally, we would have you executed for your crimes." Spoke the man again. Joss gulped and felt his stomach flip. He knew it, he was going to be killed. But, wait. Normally? Would this time be different, then? "However, normally the accused has not left behind living victims." Joss blinked, wondering what Vladimir had to do with this. Would they let Vlad kill him, give the boy his revenge?

Maybe that wouldn't be so bad. If anyone would take his life, Joss thought, he would like it to be the black haired male.

"We will let him decide what he wants to do with you." The vampire finished, and nodded to a side door Joss had yet to notice. The doormen grabbed his arms once more, lifting him to his feet. As though called in by unheard voices, the door opened and the purple eyed vampire entered the room.

He had changed a lot in the last three years. He was taller now, not so scrawny, thought not buff. His muscles were hidden by pale, creamy skin, and his hair now fell just past his shoulders. He was dressed in a strange combination of the old fashioned clothing the other vampires seemed to all wear, and modern Goth fashion.

Joss couldn't look away.

Vlad walked into the room, each step calm and sure, not even sparing Joss a glance. He nodded to the head vampire. "Good day." He murmured.

"Hello young Pravus." The man responded, nodding as well, and Joss was surprised to hear the deep respect in the mans voice. "He is all yours. You may do with him what you will."

"Thank you." Vlad nodded to them again, and Joss wondered if they used it like a sort of bow. Suddenly, deep violet eyes were locked on his own jade ones, and Joss couldn't breath. In Vlads eyes was such a strong mixture of emotion, Joss wondered how he kept from showing it on his face. There was anger, sorrow, curiosity and a deep, overwhelming sense of strength. Joss felt like he was drowning.

Vlad walked over and looked down, into his eyes. Joss tried to squirm back, but the doormen had his arms in their powerful grip. "Breath." Vlad said, voice low and calm, and Joss was surprised to realize that he, indeed, had been holding his breath. He let it out slowly and took a gulp of air to make his lungs stop burning.

Vlad looked up at the men holding Joss. "Leave him to me." The men nodded and backed away, back to their stations on either side of the door. Vlad watched them go, then turned back to Joss, who hadn't moved.

Vlad suddenly reached out and turned the other, giving him a light shove. Joss almost fell, and found himself standing on one leg, his other knee on the chair had had sat in moments before. He felt Vlads fingers on his bindings and, in moments, he was free. He didn't have time to move his arms, thought, as they were trapped again almost instantly, this time by Vlads hand. Joss shivered, looking up. He glanced at the other vampire in the room, and gulped. He was at Vlads mercy. If he tried anything, he would have 8 furious vampires on him before he could blink.

Joss felt himself pulled back, and felt Vlads chest on his bare back. He was spun again, and he frowned. He was going to get dizzy if the other kept this up. Now chest to chest with the taller vampire, he gasped at the look in the boys eyes.

He knew in that second, Vlad was about to make him pay.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
>Passing Judgment<p>

Joss gulped, and Vlads eyes looked down at his throat. The slayer tensioned. Vlad smirked, looking down at him. "You are mine now." Vlad murmured, voice cold. "You tried to kill me, but you failed. Now, I will do the same." Joss blinked, confused. "I'm going to take you to the border of death, but you will not cross. And once you return to life, you will be mine." Joss could sense the approval from the other vampires at Vlads words as Vlads fingers tangled in his hair and pulled, forcing his head back and his neck bared.

Terrified, Joss opened his mouth to whisper, "Vlad, please." He didn't know what he was asking for, not quite. But it didn't matter, because Vlads fangs were scraping his neck, teasing the skin, then sliding in.

There was less pain than Joss expected. It only pinched, like a rough shot. Then, he felt his blood leaving his body, pulled by the suction of the vampires mouth, and he cried out, more in fear than in pain. He tried to struggle, but the vampires fangs, still imbedded in his flesh, tugged at the wounds, and he was forced to remain still. Vlads hand in his hair loosened, now holding his head, gently. Joss let his neck fall limp, and heard a soft, pleased sound from the vampire draining him. Slowly, Joss felt his body numbing, his mind growing hazy. He was limp in the vampires hold now, and couldn't bring himself to care. All he could think about now was the sensation of Vlads mouth on his neck, lips moving, coaxing his blood to abandon his body. Slowly, he lifted his arms, though they felt like lead weights, and wrapped them around the vampires neck, trying to gain some sense of self; he felt like he was floating.

Joss eyes slipped closed, and he thought that maybe, just maybe, this wouldn't be such a bad way to die.

Joss awoke again, slowly. It felt like his entire body had been strapped into lead weights, and his head pounded with the beat of his heart. Still, he was alive, and that alone was enough to make the ex-slayer thankful.

Joss groaned as he tried to sit up; the effort was futile, and he let his body drop back down. He, instead, forced his eyes to clear and turned his head, looking around. He didn't recognize a single thing, and the thought scared him. He didn't know how he had gotten there - wherever there was - and franticly tried again to sit up.

"You shouldn't move." A dark, soft voice from the doorway made Joss freeze, eyes flashing over. He hadn't heard the door open, nor the other enter. And, for a hunter who relied on his senses more than anything, that was a frightening fact. The slayer frowned softly, eyeing the purple eyed teen before him. In that moment, everything came rushing back to the blond male, and his hand instinctively flew up to touch his neck; there were two tiny dips, scars from the vampires fangs. He glared.

"What do you plan to do with me?" he growled furiously. Vlad simply watched him in silence. Joss glowered. "Why didn't you kill me?" He asked instead. "Because we're _friends_?" His tone was cold, the word spoken like venom on his tongue.

This time, Vlad answered. "We're not friends." He said calmly. "Remember?"

Joss did. The last time he had had contact with the young vampire, it was a simple note in the boys locker, written in ink as black as a vampires heart. "Friendship Over."

He had never regretted those words. Not until now.

"Then why didn't you kill me?" Joss asked again, his anger beginning to wane.

"Because you are more useful alive than dead." Vladimir replied calmly. Joss tilted his head a bit, once more struggling to sit up - this time, he succeeded.

"What the hell do you mean by that!" He growled, furious.

Vlad gave him a calm look - Joss couldn't help but notice the boy had changed a lot in the last three years. Still, in the boys violet eyes, he could still see that spark of nervousness, that uncertainty that made Vlad, Vlad. Underneath the new strength and self confidence, there was still a hint of the quiet high school loner. Somehow, Joss found comfort in that.

"I mean," Vlad said, slowly, but not as though talking to a child. Rather, Joss got the feeling the other was hoping to keep him calm by speaking so softly. "I don't go out and kill, the way some of us do." Joss huffed. Like he would believe that the boy hadn't ever killed. Despite having been the boys friend, as soon as he learned what the boy was, the image he held in his mind of the outcasted but kind Goth had been replaced by a cold hearted, manipulative demon, and Joss doubted there was anything that would make him change his mind.

"Since I don't hunt," Vlad continued, ignoring the look he had received from the irate slayer. "I have to get my blood from…other sources. Usually, I get blood from hospitals, the stuff they plan to get rid of anyways." Vlad frowned. "But, for a while now, it hasn't been enough. Every now and then, I have to feed straight from the source."

"So you do kill." Joss said, feeling disgustedly triumphant.

"No. I feed from a drudge."

"A what?" Joss asked, curious despite himself.

"A drudge. A vampires slave, put simply." Vlad frowned at the term, and Joss felt, for a moment, that the boy was still somehow human. He banished that thought quickly. "I don't kill him, or even make him pass out if I can help it."

"Him?" Joss frowned.

Vlad paused, seeming to think hard, decide on how to tell him. Joss felt his stomach flip - he had a feeling he knew this person. "My first drudge. We've been together since I was eight…Henry."

"What!" Joss cried, suddenly struggling fully up. He felt rage boil in his stomach, hot lava pooling in his body, waiting till the perfect time to erupt. Preferably when he had his stake back.

"I told you, back then, that Henry knew what I was." Vlad reminded him, watching him warily now. Though they both knew Joss could do absolutely nothing in the state he was in then, it made the human feel a bit better to be able to put the vampire on his guard. "That's why. He's my drudge. When a vampire bites a human and doesn't kill them, they form a blood pact, and the human becomes theirs."

"But…You bit me…" Joss said slowly, already knowing how this conversation was going to go. "Does that mean I..?" He trailed off, knowing the answer, and feeling a layer of ice settle over the lava in his stomach, creating a painful mix.

"Are now my drudge, yes." Vlad finished for him, his eyes locked with his, violet boring into jade. "You are, from now until the day you die, my blood slave."


	4. Chapter 4

Warnings and disclaimer are still in effect.

I've nothing else to say.

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<br>The Truth, Revealed

Joss swallowed thickly. He felt like his lungs had frozen, refusing to take in air, his heart stopping for a second before beating so fast it felt like a painful hum in his chest. His mind was frozen, repeating over and over in his mind Vlads last words. 'My blood slave.'

"Until… I die?" Joss repeated softly, staring up at the vampire before him. He locked eyes with the other, and saw a flicker of compassion and something that was almost regret in those violet orbs.

"Yes. Though I could take it back…I won't. Not ever." Despite the look that had been in the boys now-calm eyes, his voice was calm, strong and sure. Joss felt the rush of fear he had felt before turn quickly into anger.

"You vampires really are cold hearted bastards, aren't you?" He snarled in reply.

To his surprise, Vlad seemed shaken.

"No! Look, Joss, even if I wanted to, I couldn't. You're a slayer! You think I can just let you go? Let you kill more of my brethren?"

"You think I should sit back while vampires feast on mine?" Joss shot back, voice like ice.

Vlad visibly flinched. Joss felt himself relax a bit - the cold, calm façade the boy had worn earlier was slipping, and he was returning to the boy Joss had known him as.

"That's not fair, Joss." He said, voice nervous, quivering.

"Why not? Your people can kill mine, but mine can't kill yours?"

"No, that's not what I-"

"What, vampires deserve life more than humans? They're better than us mere mortals?"

"No, Joss, I didn't say-"

"Oh, so all of us humans are below you, eh? Our lives are worthless? We're just-"

"Shut up!" Vlads voice was louder than Joss ever remembered hearing it, and he paused a moment. He then opened his mouth, ready to continue - he felt like he had the boy on the ropes now. But, even as he tried to speak, to snap back, his voice wouldn't work. His vocal cords felt frozen, his words clogged in his throat.

Joss' eyes widened, his hands flying up to wrap around his throat gently, as though looking for a wound he already knew wasn't there. His eyes were wide, horrified, as his lips moved, trying to speak. His rage had turned to fear; the slayer was terrified.

The look on the boys face, full of terror and mental anguish, touched Vlad. His face, which had been furious, nearly savage, as he barked out the order, softened. He walked forward a step, hand going out towards the boy sitting on the bed. Joss scrambled back; he did not want touched.

"Joss, I'm sorry. You… You can speak now." Vlads voice was soft, and Joss felt a strange sensation at his words, his heart skipping a beat as the ice in his throat shattered.

"W-what… What did you do to me?" Joss was embarrassed to hear his own whispered voice quake, trembling to match his body.

"Joss, please. I didn't mean…" Vlad came closer, and though Joss continued to back away, he felt a wall block his movements. Vlad sighed, stopping with his knees brushing the side of the bed, mere feet from the terrified slayer.

"How did you do that?" Joss asked, voice still shivering, as though trying to get over the cold from being frozen moments before.

"I… It's because you're my drudge." Vlad explained softly, moving the kneel on the bed. "You can't disobey a direct order… Your body won't let you."

Joss felt his heart stutter, and he closed his eyes, trying to breath slowly. If his emotions mounted any more, he feared he would have a heart attack. As it was, it felt like his heart was trying to beat his lungs into submission as they burned in his chest.

A soft touch on his face made his eyes flash open, his head jerking away from Vlads cooled fingers. Vlad sighed sadly, reaching out again. Joss didn't resist, giving up as he was dragged into the vampires hold. His body shuddered in the pale boys strong arms, and he gave himself over to the vampires hold, mostly because he knew that even if he didn't, the vampire could easily force him to surrender to the touch.

A small part of him, however, simply knew he needed it.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

One can never know the mental torment of realizing your body is not really your own any more. Not until it happens. Joss had thought, believed whole heartedly, that he would never be on the receiving end of such emotions. But now, laying on a soft bed in a strange room, he knew the feeling would never go away again. He was a drudge now, a slave, and that would never change.

Rolling onto his side, facing the door, Joss curled up and shut his eyes tight. Though it blocked out his sight, it did not block the memories. His fingers slid up his neck, index and middle fingers finding their positions on the two dips in the skin of his neck-fang marks. Joss had repeated the motion enough times in the last hour that it was already familiar. He could still feel, when his eyes were closed, the sharp pain and strange sensation of fangs forcing their way into him and his blood forcing its way out. His shoulders tensioned and he shuddered a moment.

Slowly, another sensation overtook his body, a whispered memory of strong, warm arms wrapped around his body, holding him tight to a strong chest. Joss groaned and rolled over, back to the door, eyes boring into the wall. He did not want to think of that, remember it. He wanted to forget that the hold of his enemy and captor had, for that short moment, brought nothing but comfort.

Footsteps outside the door startled Joss from his thoughts, and he curled tighter into himself. A soft knock hit his door, but he was silent. If Vlad wanted to come in, he knew he would whether he was invited or not. True to his expectations, the door slid open a moment later.

However, it wasn't the man he had expected.

"Joss?" Came a soft, questioning voice. Joss rolled back over and propped himself up on his elbows, looking over the blond male standing in the doorway. Henry gave a shaky smile and lifted the tray in his hands a bit, drawing Joss' attention to the plate and cup settled on it. "I brought dinner."

"Henry." Joss breathed, unable to think of anything to say. His cousin smiled a bit more and set the tray down on the rooms desk, then walked swiftly over.

Before Joss could blink, his cousin had his arms around the slayer and was holding him tight. "I've missed you!"

"Yeah. I missed you too." Joss said, hugging back before they pulled apart and Henry found a seat on the edge of the bed. "Are you alright? He hasn't hurt you?"

Henry gave a calm smile. "I should be asking you that. How are you feeling?"

Joss huffed a bit. "About as good as a vampires pet can feel, I guess." He grumbled. Henry gave a small, true smile.

"You're not his pet."

"No, you're right." Joss huffed. "I'm his slave."

Henrys smile slipped into a frown as he looked over the other. "You know, that's not really fair." He told his cousin gently. "You know he wouldn't do anything terrible to you."

"Oh, yeah. Like drinking my blood till I passed out and taking away my control over my own body isn't 'anything terrible'." Joss shot the other a sharp look, and Henry sighed.

"Give him a chance, Joss. He was your friend." Henry's voice was soft, pleading, and Joss didn't have the heart to snap back. Henry waited to see if he would keep talking, then stood and retrieved the tray. He set it on Joss lap and gave a small, careful grin. "I have to get home. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Wait." Joss called. "You still go home? Even with being his slave?"

Henry gave a calm smile. "Of course. He's not like you expect him to be. You'll see." With those cryptic words, he was gone, the door shut and locked behind him.

Joss sighed and looked down at his food. There were a few slices of pizza, a pile of fries and glass of milk. Joss couldn't help but roll his eyes. Henry still ate like he remembered.

He refused to believe Vlad might have sent him the food.

The next morning, Joss woke slowly to agitated voices below him. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, listening as the muffled voices stopped. He heard the front door open, then shut, not loudly enough to have been slammed. The argument had been settled, he guessed. A set of footsteps came up the stairs and, true to Joss' expectations, Vlad walked in a moment later.

"Oh. You're already awake." Joss looked away. He didn't want to talk to the other right now, much less see him. He heard Vlad sigh, and the vampire walk closer. Joss rolled to face him, not wanting the vampire to do anything without him watching, and gazed up into the boys dark eyes. The hint of violet that showed clearly in both light and shadow was faded now, the vampires skin even paler than before. Joss cocked an eyebrow, curious. Had the other fallen ill?

Vlad sat down on the bed, looking down at him. "Lie down." The words were breathed and, try as he might to refuse, Joss felt his back once again meet the plush covers as he gazed up at the vampire, fear and annoyance growing with the order.

"What are you doing?" He snapped, trying to sit back up. He could lift his head and move his arms and arch up, but his body would not let him sit.

Vlad moved slowly, going from sitting on the edge of the bed, to kneeling beside the slayer. Joss gulped, slowly realizing what he should have seen all along. The dulled eyes, the white skin.

Vlad was hungry.

And now, Joss was helpless.

The slayer's eyes widened, and he struggled harder, looking like his shoulders were bound to the bed by invisible ropes. "Get away from me!" He cried out, furious and frightened.

Vlads eyes were calm still, like the boys struggles were nothing to him. "Relax, Joss." The vampires voice was a low whisper, the words barely more that breath. Despite the lack of strength behind the order, Joss felt his body fall still, his tense muscles melt. He glared, the look spoiled by the terror in his eyes, and he tried to keep fighting.

Vlad calmly watched him, a small smile on his lips, amused. "Put your arms above your head." He ordered. "I won't have you trying anything."

Again, as though bound by invisible chains, Joss' body moved without him, wrists crossing on the pillow above him. The only things that showed his fear and struggle were his panting, ragged breaths, and wild eyes. "Let me go." Joss said, voice turning the order into a plea.

"Will you keep struggling?" Vlad asked. Joss glared. "Tell the truth."

The word spilled from his mouth without his consent. "Yes."

"Then, no." Vlad replied, a hint of amusement making his eyes light up. With that, the vampire leaned down, taking hold of his chin and moving him, making him tilt his head up and away, barring the old bite wound to the vampire. As much as Joss hated it, his head moved willingly, relaxed muscles not letting him fight. Joss flinched as lips found the scars, and the vampires voice murmured in his ear. "You need to learn to trust me."

"This isn't the way to earn my trust." Joss growled in reply.

"Then how?" Vlad asked, sounding honestly curious as his lips brushed the bite mark and Joss shuddered at the feeling.

"Let me go." Joss replied.

Vlads voice was almost regretful. "I can't."

And with that, the vampires fangs slid home once more.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The sensation of a vampires bite is hard to describe. It is both painful, twin needles parting flesh none too gently, ripping through to make the fresh blood flow, and somehow, strangely…pleasurable.

This was all Joss could do, wonder about the sensations he was feeling, as his blood flowed out into the warm mouth attached to his neck. His eyes closed, but not from weakness; the vampire had only just begun to drink, and was sipping slowly, despite his obvious hunger. The slayer couldn't help but wonder if the purple eyed monster drinking his blood was, maybe, trying to make it easier on him. Despite his doubts, Joss could think of no other reason for the hungry male to drink so gently.

Slowly, the mouth moved off him, though only enough for the fangs to slide, painfully and pleasantly, out of his skin. "You can move how you wish." At the words, Joss felt his lax muscles snap back into coiled springs, but only for a moment, as the mouth returned to the bite wounds and continued drinking, so slow and soothing.

Confusion and fear mounted in the slayers stomach, creating a painful swirl of emotions. Vlad was on him, drinking his blood, and the very idea scared the mortal. However, at the same time, the soft feeling of the boys lips, wet with the humans blood, moving across his skin, coaxing more blood out of the fresh wounds, caused his body to calm, his mind to relax. The vampires words came back to him, ringing softly in his mind. 'You need to learn to trust me.'

Trust? How could he, a slayer, a captive, a slave to his own body, trust the very vampire who had caused his predicament? How could he trust the vampire who was, at that very moment, drinking down the humans source of life?

He couldn't.

All he could do was wrap his arms around the vampires shoulders and hang on to keep from getting lost in the flood of sensations and emotions that threatened to rip the slayer apart from the inside out.

Slowly, weakness mounted in the slayers body. His body relaxed further, weakness making it too much of a bother to keep his muscles tense. As though sensing the boys loss of strength, Vlad pulled away, gazing down at Joss, who had yet to let go of the vampires shoulders, holding onto him like a life line. Vlad gave a small smile, and the slayer flinched back at the sight of the teens bloodied lips. Vlad sighed, using his thumb to wipe away the excess red. Joss released his hold and slumped back onto the bed.

"Was that so bad?" Vlad asked gently. Joss sent him a weak glare, though the lack of strength did not come only from the weakness in his body. He gave a low sigh and looked away, staring at the wall once more. He heard the vampire sigh, and felt the mattress move as the vampire climbed swiftly off the bed.

Joss twitched, then, as he felt the vampires lips brush his new wound, kissing the bloodied flesh for reasons Joss wasn't quite sure of. Before Joss could even turn his head to look at the vampire, the boy was gone, the door shut softly behind him.

Joss sighed, rolling onto his side and curling up. The blood loss was making him tired, and he didn't want to stay awake, as he would only be forced to relive the past events in his mind. Emotionally, he wasn't up for that yet, and he let his eyes drift slowly closed.

"Wakey wakey sleeping beauty!" It was this cheerful call that startled Joss from his sleep a few hours later. He groaned and opened his eyes to squint through the midday light at his cousin, who was just dropping his school bag by the door to his room.

"You had a good day, I assume?" Joss asked, reaching up to rub his neck, which was strangely sore, not remembering why. He blinked when he brought his hand away to see flakes of dried blood scattered on it. His eyes widened, then narrowed again.

Henry caught sight and sighed. "I knew he was hungry." He huffed. "Told him to take from me, but no… Though he was right that it would have been hard to get through my classes on half my blood."

Joss blinked, then understood. That was what the argument had been about.

"Well." Henry continued, walking to the small bathroom connected to his room and starting the water. "You'll get used to it eventually."

"I shouldn't have to get used to it." Joss snapped, watching his cousin return with a wet cloth. He reached out for the cloth, but it was held away from him with a playful smirk, and he dropped his hand and grudgingly let his cousin clean the wound up for him. When it was done, he reached up to feel it, feeling nothing different from before; all there were, were two small dips. Joss frowned, then had to assume the vampire had put his fangs in exactly the same place as before.

As though knowing what he was thinking, Henry spoke. "It's easier to hide if there are less marks." He reported. "Plus, he can feel the marks with his fangs, so he almost never misses. I've got only 5 sets and I've been his drudge since we were eight."

"How can you accept that so easy!" Joss snapped, growing irritated by the light grin on his cousins face. "You have five bite marks! How can you just let him bite you like that?" Joss scowled, remembering earlier, when simple words held him helpless. "Let me guess. He just orders you to let him?"

A light chuckle startled the sulking male, and Joss quickly looked up at the other, expression surprised. "No, actually." Henry shook his head. "The first time he bit me, when we were eight, well, that was actually not planned at all. It was an accident." Joss raised one eyebrow, not convinced. "After that, he didn't bite me for a long time. Not till after you left." Joss' eyebrows nearly reached his hairline, expression coldly skeptical. Henry ignored him and continued. "He was hungry all the time, bagged blood not helping any more. He was my friend, and he was hurting. So, I told him to bite me."

"You what!" Joss cried, exasperated with his cousin. He couldn't believe his own flesh and blood had just told him he had offered himself up like some midnight snack to a monster!

"I told him to bite me." Henry repeated, calmly. "And he refused." Those words, for some reason, calmed Joss. "But it got worse, and I kept pushing. And soon enough, he listened. Ever since then, I've donated to him when he needed." Henrys expression darkened a hint. "But, it's been getting worse." He added softly. "Before, it was rare, after he over exerted himself or got injured. Now, it happens once a week, even if nothing sets it off."

"He didn't start taking too much, did he?" Joss growled.

Henry shook his head. "No. A vampires bite holds three things; a numbing agent, an anticoagulant and some sort of chemical that makes us produce blood faster for a while afterwards. We replenish all the blood we lost within a few days." Joss had to admit that made sense. It had only been a few hours, and he no longer felt the blood loss weakening him.

"Then, if he had you, why does he need me?" Henry sighed softly.

"He doesn't. Honestly, there is only one reason you're here." Joss tilted his head. "The council would have been much happier if he had killed you. They're worried about him having you here; they think you're still a threat." Henry shrugged, mind wandering, and he stood and grabbed his bag, obviously getting ready to head out.

"Wait!" Joss called. "You still didn't tell my why he kept me."

Henry paused at the door, swinging the bag onto his shoulders. "You should already know." He replied with a sigh. "He didn't want to kill you. He didn't want you to die. Vlad hasn't changed his impression of you just because he found out you're a slayer." Henry's eyes caught his cousins and held them, expression strong. "Despite what he may have said, Joss, he still thinks of you as his friend. He still cares about you. He always has. And, despite how you're acting, he probably always will."

Joss barely heard the door shut behind his cousin, his eyes wide and expression torn. Henry couldn't be right? Vlad couldn't still care about him? Vlad was a monster. Nothing more, nothing less. Vlad was a cold hearted, blood sucking, emotionless monster.

…Wasn't he?


End file.
